Harry, Harry, Harry
by A. Padfoot
Summary: The war is over. Voldemort is dead. Or so they thought. Harry's mind is being invaded by the Dark Lord once more, but few believe him. They're suffering from "The Fudge", unwilling to believe their world is facing darkness once more.
1. Chapter 1

Some suffering never ends. Some people never have a happy ending. Some people are born to suffer.

The Ministry was empty when the Aurors returned from their mission. Harry and Ron stepped out of the Floo and paused for a moment as Terry Boot and Ernie MacMillian stepped through. They grinned at each other, in a sort of tired way and made their way to the lifts. They still had to make their reports before going home for the night. Harry was seriously considering not going into work tomorrow, it had been an exhausting evening.

Harry opened the door to their office, letting Ron in behind him and they went to their desks. He knocked some empty cups and wrappers into the trash can and scowled at Ron. For some reason, Ron was able to keep his desk orderly and clean. He suspected Hermione had something to do with it but Ron wouldn't tell him his secret. He picked up a pile of papers and tossed them onto the ground next to his desk. He wasn't even sure what was in the pile but it wasn't anything he needed now.

He sat down and pulled out the forms he need to do and kicked his feet up on his desk. A notebook was pushed off and he sighed loudly. He could hear Ron's quil scratching on the parchment so he hurried to get started. He did not want to be stuck here longer than he had to be!

He was on the last two pages when Ron stood up and stretched. He looked up at him and Ron smirked.

"Done!" He said cheerfully. Harry balled up some parchment and threw it at him.

"Then get out of here, you're distracting me," he all but growled. Ron winked and slammed the door behind him.

Git.

Harry rubbed at his eyes and checked the pocket watch the Weasley's gave him on his 17th birthday. It was nearing 1am. He sighed and picked up his quill. He was going to finish this soon! It was 15 after one when he finished the last form and tossed it on his desk. He grinned. Finally! He stood up and picked up the pile of parchment he had set down earlier and that's when he heard it.

"He's picking up the parchment."

He jumped and whipped around. The room appeared empty. He stomped to the door and threw it open and looked around. The hallway was empty. His heart was pounding now and he shut the door. He ran a hand through his hair. He knew he heard it. It was so loud and clear, he's picking up the parchment.

"Homenum Revelio!"

Nothing happened. He frowned. He was going home. Maybe he was just really, really tired. He glanced around the room once more before leaving.

It happened again when he got home. He was in his bathroom, looking into the mirror, at his scar in particular when he heard, quite loudly and clearly, "He's back."

Harry jumped again and spun in a circle. The room was empty! He's back, who? What could- he felt a cold dread fill him. Voldemort. He was hearing the voice inside his head, from his scar. Voldemort. He was sweating now. He needed to tell Ron and Hermione, then they could figure out what to do from there. He was gripping the counter as he tried to calm down. Someone knocked on the door.

"Harry?"

It was Ginny. He breathed and opened it. She looked him up and down, frowning.

"Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not," He said and walked to their bedroom. He sat down on their bed.

"Ginny," he pulled her down so she was on his lap and buried his face in her hair. The scent of her shampoo washed over him and he felt calmer. He felt her wrap her arms around him.

"What's wrong?" She sounded scared. He didn't want to tell her, they had gone through so much and they should be safe...How could he shatter that? He took a deep breath and pulled away to look into her eyes. He cupped her face and she leaned into the touch.

"The connection between Voldemort and me… It's opened again," he said slowly. She froze and moved so she was sitting quite rigidly in his lap.

"What?"

"It's opened again, I-I don't know how else to explain it," he was trying not to tremble, but she must have noticed. She grabbed his hands and squeezed them tightly.

"What do we do?" she whispered.

"I'm going to let Ron and Hermione know and contact the rest of the Order, what else can we do?"

She stood up and turned away, with a wave of her wand she sent off her patronus, the horse pranced around the room and paused, pawing at the ground. Ginny approached it, cupping a hand to the horse's ear and whispered into it. He loved it when she did that, it was such a beautiful scene and never failed to bring a smile to his face. It split into many, the bright blue light making it impossible to count, and then it drifted through the wall.

She turned to him and said, "We're meeting in an hour, I don't think this should wait."

The meeting didn't go well. Most of the Weasley's had arrived, some, like George, hadn't bothered changing out of their people seemed to be pulling, what Harry called, "The Fudge", and refusing to acknowledge that Voldemort was back. He knew if Dumbledore was still around, the Order members wouldn't be questioning if he was right. They blindly followed Dumbledore, they were all guilty of it.

Apparently, that just wasn't carrying over to him. The Weasley's believed him, without a doubt, but they had always came out better when Harry's scar was bringing him visions. Fleur seemed to be the most adamant about it and she was clearly dancing around a subject, not quite brave enough to say it. Harry knew though and his anger flared.

"Just say it! You're thinking about how I got Sirius killed, is that it?" he yelled. Her eyes had widened and she glanced at her husband, who took a step forward. Harry took one back and reached for his wand. Bill wasn't as friendly to him as the other Weasleys.

"Don't you ye-" He snarled, only to have Fleur cut him off.

"Yes!" She answered loudly but she finished in a softer voice, "But It wasn't your fault, 'Arry."

He went to reply when Ginny grabbed him and shot him her 'shut up' look.

"It's worth exploring. We need to know if the connection is open," she said. There was a general agreement. Fleur huffed and crossed her arms. Bill attempted a weak smile. Mr. Weasley spoke first.

"We need to hear what the chatter is on the Dark Markets."

Harry nodded.

"I've got a favor to call in, I know who I can talk to."

"Shouldn't we use Mundungus?" Hagrid asked. Mundungus looked up suddenly from the corner he was sitting in.

"That is m'job," he mumbled. "Why else would you need me?"

"We ask ourselves that often," McGonagall said.

Harry smirked, he still hadn't forgiven him for stealing Black property. Another ear was always good though and in the end he agreed. He would have prefered to keep his contact secret but no one was willing to let him go without them knowing where.

"What if something happened, Harry?" Mrs. Weasley had asked. He remembered her boggarts and sighed. He'd have to prepare for the yelling then.

"Draco Malfoy."

It was only with a compromise that Harry could go, as long as Ron was allowed to be nearby. Harry had refused to let him go with, Ron's hot temper would only be fueled by Malfoy. They decided Harry would simply show up, if he asked if it was okay, Malfoy would surely decline and it wasn't an option.

He hurried outside and Apparated to Malfoy manor. The black iron gates met him first and he approached them hesitantly. The Death Eaters had grabbed them and they came to life so he cautiously reached out and grabbed a hold. They melted at his touch, turning to a dark smoke and rising to the sky. He walked forward and then turned to look behind him. The gates had reformed. It took him a while to walk the path to the manor but when he arrived, it wasn't a house elf that had greeted him at the door.

Malfoy had been furious to see him in his home. Harry wasn't a bit surprised to see him ball up his fists.

"What do you want, Potter?" He had snapped. His lip was curled up in dislike. Harry rose to the challenge, grinning at him.

"I'm calling in the life debt."

All the fight seemed to fade out of Malfoy. His hands went limp, the sneer on his face dropped, he even paled a bit. He eyed Harry up and down for a moment and then jerked his head towards the hallway, leading the way to a sitting room. An elf was already bringing biscuits and tea. Draco settled into a chair. Harry hovered. He really didn't want to sit.

"Manners would dictate that you would sit the fuck down, Potter."

He was right, of course. He rolled his eyes though and sat across from Draco.

"Explain it then, what is it you want?"

"It's hard to expla-"

Draco snorted and then looked surprised that Harry had stopped talking, raised an eyebrow and shook his head. He sighed. This was going to be unbearable. So he explained his scar, the connection with Voldemort, and hesitated at the end. He decided to shove a biscuit in his mouth to buy some time. He wasn't sure how Draco was going to react to the next bit.

But Draco seemed to already know. His eyes were impossibly wide and he leaned closer, glancing around the room, and whispering, "Are you saying...He is back, Potter?"

He nodded and swallowed too much tea. His hand had shook. Draco pursed his lips together and leaned back in his chair. He was so white the light next to him seemed to be reflecting off his skin.

"Are you wanting me to spy for you?" he hissed. "Are you insane?"

"Malfoy, how else are we supposed to know what he's planning?"

Draco stood up and wrapped his arms around himself.

"My Mark hasn't been burning."

"It didn't burn for the Death Eaters last time until he got his body back," Harry pointed out. "We need you to do this."

"What if I refuse?"

Malfoy's lip trembled before he got control of his emotions and sneered to cover it. Harry's heart seemed to jump into his throat.

"I won't make you," he said.

"I hate you," Malfoy snarled.

Harry sighed and set his tea down. He stood up. Draco flinched and took a step back. Perhaps he had expect Harry to strike him, to force him to help. Well, Harry wasn't a monster. He wasn't going to put anyone in danger who wasn't willing.

"I'll be going."

He had hoped, Draco would follow him, stop him, tell him he'd help but Draco said nothing. He wondered briefly if Draco was wanting him to force him to but pushed the thought aside. If that was what it took...Well, Harry wasn't a monster. He asked, he was turned down, and he wasn't going to force or beg for help. He had Mundungus.


	2. Chapter 2

SOOOO I forgot to update the story on FFnet. It's updated on A03 though. My bad! Ill try to correct this over the next couple days.

Enjoy! Reviews makes Padfoot happy! :D

Three long days stretched away in relative silence. The Order members all reported in regularly, all besides Mundungus. Harry was beginning to worry about the thief, but Minerva reassured him, it wasn't abnormal for him to disappear for a week at a time before returning with news. Ron wasn't the least bit surprised that Malfoy had declined to help. Hermione, however, thought he should try again. She had cornered him in his office, early in the morning. Harry's brain was still sluggishly trying to process information when she started in on him.

"Well maybe if he sees how serious you are about this-"

"It's Malfoy," Ron said loudly. "He won't help us."

Harry was inclined to agree but she was frowning at him. He sighed.

"Fine! I'll go back to the Manor this weekend and try again. Happy?"

She crossed her arms.

"He was a Death Eater, he's more likely to get information than Mundungus," she snapped.

"But he has no reason to give that to us," Ron pointed out. "He's not our friend. Why do you want to save everything? First the House Elves with spew-"

"Don't call it spew! It's -"

Ron lunged over the table, knocking over their cups of tea to cover her mouth.

"All right! All right! Don't lecture us."

Harry didn't have to go to Malfoy though, Draco came to him. Draco was quiet as Harry motioned him into the sitting area and got them tea. He noticed as he passed him a cup that his skin was ice cold. Harry looked at him in some concern. The cloak Malfoy was wearing was clearly soaked. He waved his wand at the fire and it grew brighter, filling the room with warmth. Draco actually shot him a small smile and his heart skipped a beat. He coughed and took a seat next to him.

"There's nothing about...about Voldemort," Draco said. He had closed his eyes as if saying the word caused him great pain. "There is some talk of a new Dark Lord but…

"Couldn't that be Voldemort?" Harry pressed, leaning forward.

"It could be," Draco said exasperated. "But the Purebloods always bleat on about a new dark lord. They have to hold on to hope."

It was odd, thinking of the Death Eaters and purebloods purification as hope when Harry had always viewed it as despair. The thought was an annoying fly, he kept twitching to get away from him. It just wouldn't settle.

"I'm going to meet with the Goyle's later today, I haven't seen them in a couple years, but they were still good-"

He's lying.

An irrational anger surged through him and it must have shown on his face, because Malfoy had stopped mid sentence. He was frowning, his forehead scrunched with concern.

"You're lying," Harry said. "What do you know? What is he up to, Malfoy?"

Draco's mouth fell open and his cheeks tinged pink.

"I'm not- Potter- be reasonable, I've only had a couple days. I haven't picked up on anything and besides, if he is gaining power, if he is still alive, it's not like- I mean- the Malfoy's -we fell from favor! We turned blood traitor at the end of the war, he won't want anything to do with us, it's not likely anyone would talk to me!"

"Yeah?" Harry said, they were both standing now. Harry wasn't sure when either of them had taken to their feet but Draco's hand plunged into his robe pocket and he drew his wand, Harry blinked in surprise. He hadn't even pulled his wand yet. He could see Malfoy breathing heavily. He smirked. "Scared, Malfoy?"

"I'm leaving," he panted. "You're dangerous, Potter. Stay away from me."

He felt like a predator as he watched Malfoy move carefully backwards, sneaking glances behind him until his back hit the door and Malfoy reached behind him searching for the handle. His eyes never left Harry's.

"If you're involved, I'll make sure you regret it," Harry warned.

Malfoy's eyes flashed as he shot Harry one more look before slamming the door.

One by one everyone seemed to grow disinterested with the case. There simply wasn't any proof. The leads all went dry. Malfoy hadn't shown his face for well over a week and even though Hermione was pressing him to go and apologize ("Why had you called him a liar in the first place? Honestly!") But worse of all, Ginny didn't believe him. She had started suggesting he visit St. Mungo's. He felt betrayed and hurt. He had thought, besides Ron and Hermione, his own wife would believe him. She had been possessed by Voldemort before and understood what it was like after all.

"She's being possessed again, Harry."

He looked at his fiancee, curled up, reading by the fire. Was it possible she was being possessed or was he simply being fed false information? He couldn't be sure. So, he took a large gulp of his tea and set his cup down. Ginny looked up at the noise.

"Er-have you ...Don't get mad," he said suddenly. "I have to be sure, but can you remember everything? It's not possible you're being...possessed?"

As he predicted, this seemed to fire Ginny up. Her eyes flashed, the smile vanished from her face and she was on her feet.

"You need to go to St. Mungo's!" she yelled. "There's no proof he's back, Harry. There's something wrong, maybe someone cursed you?"

"I'll go if you go," he said. He stood up. If this was the only way to get her to take him seriously, then he'd play along. It wouldn't hurt to be checked for curses in any case. She smiled, clearly amused at his challenge.

"After you, hero."

They did an exam and neither of them were cursed. Harry was not ready to give up though and began questioning her on any recent discoveries or purchases. This only upset his wife more.

"I am not 11, Harry! I am not some -some - that SAME silly child who picked up a book full of dark magic and -and poured her soul into it. Don't you think I know better? That I learned from that experience?"

She looked a bit green and he reached out for her but she shoved him away.

"Don't! How dare you…" She trailed off with a sob and looked away.

He felt helpless as he watched her. The Healer approached him.

"Mr. Potter, I do have some questions for you. If you don't mind?"

Harry crossed his arms.

"Go ahead, I can answer them here."

The Healer looked a bit uncomfortable but when Ginny nodded at her encouragingly she continued and asked the first question,

"I want you to answer these on a scale from Definitely agree, some what agree, agree, not sure, disagree, some what disagree, and definitely disagree. Do you understand?"

"Yes," he said shortly.

"I think that I have felt that there are odd or unusual things going on that I can't explain. "

"Definitely agree."

"I think that I might be able to predict the future."

He rolled his eyes. "Definitely disagree. I'm not Trelwany."

Ginny cracked a small smile at this and he felt some relief. At least she was not hating him.

"I may have felt that there could possibly be something interrupting or controlling my thoughts,  
>feelings, or actions. "<p>

He was silent for a long moment. The way it sounded came off crazy but they had to take into consideration his connection to Voldemort, surely?

"Definitely agree."

"I have had the experience of doing something differently because of my superstitions."

"Not sure?" he answered. He was getting that annoying twitch going on. He wanted this done. "How much longer is this going to be?"

"Only a few more statements, Mr. Potter."

He sighed and nodded. A few more, he could last a few more.

"I think that I may get confused at times whether something I experience or perceive may be real or may be just part of my imagination or dreams."

His lip curled up and he took a step away. He noticed the scared look the Healer shot Ginny, the alarm on his wife's face, but he shook his head.

"I'm done here."

Ginny followed him home in silence. When they stepped inside she rounded on him, magic seemed to be sparking off of her.

"You should have finished!"

"Did you hear what they were asking?" He yelled back. The pictures on the walls trembled and one fell. Ginny jumped and looked at it before whirling back around.

"Control your magic," she snarled. "You're destroying our home."

"It is always me, isn't it?" he asked. He was not going to calm down any time soon. "You won't even take into consideration that YOU forced me to go!"

Another item fell off the fire place and she pulled out her wand. This stopped him. Did she really think he was going to hurt her? Her lip trembled and she choked on her words.

"I'm going to the Burrow. I'll come back when I'm r-ready."

"Ginny…" he followed her to the Floo. "I am sorry, please, please do not go…"

"Don't! Don't follow me!" She yelled shrilly.

She glanced back at him and he saw the first tears fall. She grabbed the Floo powder and tossed a handful in.

"The Burrow!"

And she was gone. Harry could not bring himself to move and eventually he sat down, staring at it. Maybe if he waited she would come back. He could not accept that his wife had left because she was scared of what he might do. He would risk everything for her.

He woke in the morning to find himself cold and stiff on the floor. The fire long dead. The sunlight starting to spill into the clearly empty and horribly silent house. He closed the Floo with a wave of his hand and curled up tightly. The first sob was ripped from his throat leaving it raw and sore and finally the tears came. He was alone. He had not been truly alone since before Hogwarts. His heart seemed to clench and more awful memories came to the surface.

Ron and Hermione came through the Floo when Harry had finally dragged himself up. He hadn't expected them to come immediately through, apparently they had been trying for an hour and were starting to get worried. Hermione paused as she took him in and he sighed. He looked like shit and this was confirmed when she cried, "Oh, Harry!" and threw herself at him.

"I'm fine," he said, peeling her off of him and holding her away at a distances. "I need a shower and something to eat. I'm fine."

After his shower he found even Ron and Hermione were doubting him. Out of everyone, those two were supposed to be his rock. His solid support. Although if he were honest with himself, it wouldn't be the first time they bailed on him. It was the same during the Chamber of Secrets fiasco. Hearing voices no one else could hear wasn't a good sign, even in the Wizarding world after all. He scowled and stabbed at his broccoli.

"Are you sure you don't want meat, Harry?" Ron asked. He was forever pushing meat on him but Harry had given it up after the war. He simply could not stomach any more death. Ron shrugged and patted him on the back.

"Tough luck about Ginny. She will come around though," Ron reassured him. Harry nodded and stabbed at his food some more. He was not much interested in eating it. Ron and Hermione had dragged him over to their place to eat when they caught wind of Ginny leaving.

"It is not for good, you know?" Hermione said. "Once she calms down, I am sure she will be back home, Harry."

"Yeah, and still won't believe me. She is insisting I go back to ST Mungo's and have them do a psychiatric exam. I am not crazy and I am tired of being accused of it."

"No one is saying you are crazy!" Hermione said. "But you have been through a lot. It wouldn't hurt to check would it?"

Harry glared at her and she seemed to shrink away a bit. Then he turned to Ron.

"What do you think?" Harry demanded.

Ron looked startled and choked on his food. When he came up for air finally he mumbled.

"It wouldn't hurt and if it makes Ginny happy…."

Harry immediately pushed his plate away.

"I am not hungry."

"Oh, Harry!" Hermione cried but he was already standing and walking outside.

"Look, I can't do this on my own," he said suddenly. "Neither of you believe me, the only person who seems to is someone I can't even trust fully. Hermione, I need you to believe me."

She chewed on her lip and looked at him pleadingly.

"I want to believe you," she said quietly. "But there is no proof. Besides, wasn't the - the Horocrux destroyed when you..."

"When I died?" He asked. "That's what I thought. But the connection is clearly open and Malfoy's reported back on some Death Eater movement."

"Malfoy, told you this?" Ron had finally arrived. He was carrying his steak in a sandwich now. Harry wrinkled his nose.

"Yes."

"You can't trust a word out of that ferret!" Ron yelled. Hermione slapped his shoulder.

"Draco-"

"Please, Hermione, my heart cannot take you calling him Draco." Ron said. She rolled his eyes.

"He is a good source."

"Assuming he is telling the truth," Harry pointed out. "I did accuse him of lying. He got scared and ran."

"Draco-"

"Malfoy," Ron corrected Hermione. She rolled her eyes again.

"He does not seem to be the type to just run after being accused of lying, what happened?" she asked.

"Er- well, I may have scared him. He seemed scared anyway. I did not threaten him!"  
>Hermione sighed. "What did he say, Harry?"<p>

So he told them the very little information he had. Ron was not interested but Hermione wanted Harry to contact him.

"Ah, no, Hermione! He told me to stay away!"

"Harry."

And that's how he ended up writing Malfoy a hurried note.


	3. Chapter 3

Harry woke early in the morning to someone shoving his shoulder.

"Potter."

He blinked his eyes open and Malfoy's face swam into focus. A sharp jolt of adrenaline hit him and he was shoving Malfoy into the wall with his left hand and jamming his wand into his throat. His eyes swam as he tried to focus and it occurred to him that Draco had a much warmer look than his father and that Lucius was in Azkaban. He let go and backed away until he was sitting on his bed. He buried his face in his hands.

"I'm sorry, I thought you were Lucius."

Draco lifted his lip up in a sneer and glared at Harry.

"I am not my father. I do hope you realize this. I am not Lucius."

Harry pulled his face out of his hands and squinted up at him. He looked so fuzzy without his glasses, he couldn't even make out Draco's face.

"I know you're not Lucius, Mal-Draco. I was just...Nightmares from the war," he mumbled. "I thought it was him, you look so similar but after a moment I saw. You have softer features and well, " he turned red and ran a hand through his hair. "Your eyes aren't as cold as his or as they used to be."

He lept up and grabbed his classes.

"How did you get in anyway? My wards should have prevented you from entering."

His blue eyes narrowed at him.

"Your wards were down," he said. "They were clearly taken down by you, they weren't attacked or dismantled by an outside force. I figured you did it."

"Why would I take down my own wards?" he asked. Malfoy rolled his eyes as a reply.

Harry picked up a black t shirt that was littered on the ground. There was dirty clothes all over actually. Draco wrinkled his nose in annoyance. Harry noticed it and snorted.

"Too dirty for you, Malfoy? I am sure purebloods would be beaten bloody for having their room like this."

Draco laughed, "Potter, you're not much better than a Muggle born."

Draco shot him a genuine smile than that made him incredibly uncomfortable. The hairs on his arms stood up and his stomach did a flop. He cleared his throat and looked away.

"I came because I have news. The Death Eaters are meeting up, it doesn't sound like Voldemort but it's more of the old crew. Dolohov, the Carrows, " Draco sighed and looked up. "Goyle will be there as well."

Harry turned back around and Draco averted his eyes; instead he kept his eyes on the ceiling. Harry was suddenly aware of how many cobwebs were there. He sighed.

"I'm sorry."

Draco snapped his head down to look at him and snarled, "I don't need your pity, Potter. Goyle made his choice and so did- so did Crabbe."

"Yeah, they did but you still lost a friend and another is headed on a dark path. I'm sorry for that, if we could have saved Crabbe-"

"I know!" Draco yelled. "I know! You would have saved him too! Even though he tried killing your friend, even though he would have handed you over to Him, I know!"

"I didn't want anyone's death on me...I have enough blood on my hands," Harry said. He smiled at Draco again.

"I will figure out the wards in a moment, I think this meeting of ours could have waited until morning."

"It is morning."

"Malfoy, it's 3am."

"That's still morning," he said stubbornly. "Besides they are meeting in two hours, you would be bloody furious if I waited to tell you."

There was a long pause where Draco looked around the room, his face scrunched with confusion.

"Where is your wife?" he demanded.

Harry looked down and scuffed the floor with his foot. Instantly hating himself for showing such a childish action.

"She left."

"Getting a divorce, Potter?" he taunted.

"Drop it, Malfoy."

"She is cute, for a blood traitor anyway. I thought it was ridiculous of you to marry her though, she's clearly a fan. You don't marry your fans, Potter. They're crazy."

He should have expected the punch to the gut, Harry thought viciously. Draco was on one knee clutching his stomach and glaring up at him. He glowered down at him.

"I don't want to talk about it, Malfoy."

Draco grunted in response. He surely left a bruise and for a moment he felt guilty. He held out a hand to Draco.

"I'm sorry," he said. "But I am not talking about it."

"Fine," Draco responded and knocked his hand away as he stood. "I take it you'll want to know the location?"

"Do you have any Polyjuice potion?" Harry asked instead of answering.

"No?" He was leading Draco into the bathroom.

"Can you get some?" he asked, as he motioned for Draco to follow him in. He was rinsing his mouth out.

"No."

"I thought you were studying Potions?" Harry said after he spat the green liquid out. Draco lifted a lip in disgust.

"I am, that does not mean I have every potion on hand for the savior."

"Well, it's for both of us. I need you to come with me."

"Potter, there is no way we're getting into their meeting without them knowing. They know exactly who should be there."

"That's why we Stun two of them and take on their form. They won't know any better. We need to talk as little as possible. We'll be fine."

"You're kidding. Tell me this is not how you planned things during the war. That dragon, that was actually thought out, wasn't it? I mean, Granger was with you!" Draco cried.

"Hermione came up with the idea on the spot. We didn't have an exit strategy and really, even if we had, I doubt we would have been able to pull it off."

"Unbelievable," Draco snarled. "Go fetch, Granger! She'll keep you alive. I got you the information, I am not walking into that pit. I am not going to die, Potter!"

Harry was mildly surprised when Draco relented and went with him to the meeting. Since they wouldn't get any Polyjuice, they used his Invisibility Cloak. Try as he might, Harry kept stepping on Malfoy. He could almost feel the annoyance rolling off the Slytherin. He winced when he did it again, expecting an outburst but Malfoy just turned to glare at him, causing their noses to brush. Draco's eyes softened, he flushed pink and turned away.

"It's that building there, that's the MacNair home. That's where they're meeting," Draco whispered.

"So remember, we just need to follow one of them inside." Harry was leaning close to him, he could feel Draco shivering.

"What if we're caught?" Draco asked.

"We get free of the house and we Apparate to my house, side along."

"Potter, what if that's not possible?" Draco hissed.

"The Ministry."

Suddenly a tall dark figure appeared out of no where with a loud crack. It could have been mistaken for thunder, but Draco knew that person was a wizard. They cloak was hiding their face but it didn't matter. As one, they quickly scurried behind him, trying hard not to slosh in the mud puddles.

They went up the stone steps and the glass doors swung open, shining a yellow light on them all. The door closed almost immediately behind the Death Eater, Draco barely escaped having it hit him.

Everything seemed to melt away as Harry took in their surroundings, any exits, and people. He reached and grabbed Draco's hand to make sure the latter didn't move too far away. The Death Eater they followed moved into the next room, they crept forward.

Harry jabbed him hard in the shoulder and looked pointedly to their far right. An old Death Eater with long, grey hair was standing there. His hood was off, revealing the narrow face of Travers.

Harry grabbed his wrist and tugged him closer. Someone was moving past them. Draco pressed himself against him. The scent of hazlewood invaded his senses. Malfoy smelled good. He was taking another deep whiff when Malfoy pulled away. He led them deeper into the house. They settled against a wall nearest the exit.

A bulky Death Eater stood and seemed to demand the attention of the rest, because they all fell quiet and turned to watch him. Draco's lips brushed against Harry's ear.

"Rowle," he breathed and pulled away. Harry didn't need the information though, he remembered Rowle well enough. Rowle smiled, revealing rows of shocking white teeth. Harry had been expecting yellow, this smile unnerved him. Suddenly, Goyle shifted and his seat and grunted.

"What about Malfoy?"

"Lucius will be joining us at our next meeting. He's still in Azkaban but we have an insider that's going to assist us in liberating him."

Goyle shook his massive head.

"Draco. He's been snooping around. He even asked me if my Mark had been burning."

Harry elbowed the blonde at his side and turned to look at him. At least he had turned red. What a stupid move! Harry was fuming and almost missed Rowle's reply.

"Lucius can make contact with his son, perhaps he's not lost to the other side. He was merely a child-"

"As was I!" Goyle yelled and stood up. "He's a dirty blood traitor!"

Rowle held up a hand, still smirking, with his eyes closed.

"We will give Draco a chance, if he can't live up to his surname, we will allow Lucius to dispose of him."

That settled things for Draco, Harry thought viciously. He wasn't going on any more missions, perhaps should even go into hiding and where would be better besides Grimmauld Place? No one would expect him there and with Ginny leaving...He swallowed and focused back on the meeting.

"What about Potter?" Nott yelled out. He was leaning forward.

'He is not our main target but if you get the chance," Rowle shrugged. `Regardless, he will be trouble for us."

"We need access to Gringotts. Yaxley, do you still have contact with the Goblins?"

Yaxley seemed to shrink away. Harry remembered how he had left him under a curse and felt a pang of guilt. At least he was alive, he thought, trying to reassure himself. Their escape could have killed him, but it didn't and besides, he is a Death Eater...

"Y-Yes, I can make contact with one of them for information."

"There's only one valut I need access to, a Goblin will be able to assist a group of Death Eaters in to retrive the item I desire and out again without the Aurors being tipped off."

Harry took them back to Grimmauld Place number 12 in silence. Kreacher greeted him enthusiastically but it was with a disgruntled voice that Harry asked him to fetch them some tea. Draco settled on the edge of the ugliest couch he had ever seen. Orange and red, brown splotches. Harry had bought it when he first moved in, alone. It was from a 2nd hand Muggle store. He was rather fond of it, but the scowl on Malfoy's face told him he was the only one that appreciated it. Malfoy looked on the verge of talking so he opened his mouth first.

"You are in danger now. I am sorry."

Startled, Draco shook his head.

"I told you I would be putting myself in harms way. That was why I did not want to do this."

"It is my fault.."

Draco stood and stomped his foot.

"I made that decision. You did not force me. I wanted to help. I assumed this risk. I-"

"You need to stay here. I can't risk you going home to Lucius."

His lip curled up like it often did when he was arguing with him.

"I don't need your protection."

Harry blinked at him.

"Malfoy, it's my fault you are at risk. Please let me keep you safe. If you were to die…"

"Potter, let's make one thing clear. I do not need the protection of a half blood. My father maybe an extremist, but he would not spill my blood and beyond that you are missing an opportunity. If I go along with this pure blooded insanity again, I can get you whatever proof or information you may need."

"You're not an Auor though, it isn't on you-"

"Not everyone in the Order is an Auror. I think I can handle it, Potter."

He dusted his clothes off even though there was not anything sticking to his robes.

"I can compromise. I will check in with you. If Lucius is at the Manor, I will inform you of it."

Harry scoffed and came to stand next to him.

"and how do you think you will get a message to me without him noticing?"

Kreacher came back into the room, cups floating a head of him. He bowed to them each but his expression notably brightened as he looked at Draco.

"Tea, masters."

"Thank you, Kreacher," Harry said and took a sip. Draco took his cup without looking at the elf.

"You do realize you don't have to be polite to a house elf. It is actually frowned upon."

"Just because he's enslaved to me does not justify treating him without any respect. If I had it my way, he would be free. The barmy elf does not want that though. Just mention clothes and he starts sobbing."

Harry shook his head and then grabbed his shoulder.

"I have a coin that Hermione charmed. If you need me, all you need to do is activiat the coin. It will cause the one I have to grow warm and give me your coordinates to Apparate."

"Pootter, I do not want you just Apparating in the middle of things. If I need rescue, I will use it but otherwise-"

"Otherwise, when you can get away, inform me of any developments. If I find out there has been a break out at Azkaban-"

Draco waved him off. "Obviously, Potter. I will be fine."

"You say that now and then later on you will be crying for my help." He put on a squeaky voice. "Potter, save me!"

"I do not sound like that and I do not think that sentence has ever or will ever leave my lips."

Harry leaned against the doorway and smiled at him.

"We will see, Malfoy."

Draco did not want to leave just yet, so his mind fished around for another topic. It landed back on the missing wife.

"Where is Ginevera?"

Harry wrinkled his nose.

"Must you call her that? Even Ginny hates being called Ginevera."

"You have mastered the art of not answering questions, Potter. I salute you."

Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"She doesn't like any of this Voldemort business. She thinks there isn't any proof and that I am …."

"Crazy? Because we all knew you were a nut."

Harry rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, that is her concern. She does not feel safe with me. She thinks the voice I am hearing is merely in my head, that it is not Voldemort. I thought her, of all people would understand."

"Because she is your wife? Let me tell you, Potter that has no baring on whether or not she understands."

"She was possessed by Voldemort in her first year at Hogwarts," Harry said loudly. "That is why I thought she would understand. That she would not leave me…"

There was an uncomfortable silence where Harry looked at the floor. Draco rolled his shoulders as his brain worked frantically to come up with anything at all to say.

"Well at least you won't have to worry about me fleeing, I am not so easily scared by Dark Lords."

Harry's head snapped up. His green eyes were burning with emotion and Draco felt his face heat up once more. It was time to leave, that much was sure. Why had he even said that? Harry touched his shoulder and he jumped away.

"I uh appreciate the show of solidarity, Malfoy. It means a lot coming from you."

He sounded amused and Draco's embarrassment caused him to lash out, before he had thought about it he had snapped.

"You do not have to be such a tosser, Potter. I am helping you, after all!"

and he wrenched open the door and slammed it behind him.

Stupid, speccy git.


	4. Chapter 4

After Draco left, Harry went to the couch and sat down. His head was throbbing and he was starting to feel nauseous. He did not want to throw up. He considered calling Kreacher for more tea but couldn't bring himself to do it. it had been such a very long day. His worry for Draco's safety was eating at him but he tried to push it aside. There was nothing he could do about it. He had to trust that Malfoy could take care of himself.

Even though Harry knew that was not true. Draco needed saving constantly. How many times did they save his life during the final battle? He really needed Harry to look after him.

Harry.

His name was spoken so slowly, he was not sure what was being said at first. He looked up and glanced around the room and it happened again.

Harry.

He stood up now.

"Ginny?" he yelled out. There was no answer.

Harry.

"Ginny, I'm in the living room!" He said as he moved to the hallway.

He could not understand it though, how did she get back in the house without using the door or the Floo? He made it to the kitchen to find Kreacher preparing a large tray with muffins and he laughed and leaned against the doorway.

"Malfoy left a couple minutes ago, Kreacher. Sorry."

The elf turned his large watery eyes on him and huffed.

"Master should have informed Kreacher. Kreacher likes the Malfoy boy."

"I know you do, I will make sure to let you say goodbye in the future," Harry said and grabbed one of the muffins. "Where is Ginny? When did she return anyway?"

Kreacher frowned and clicked his fingers. The muffin Harry had disappeared.

"Hey!"

"Master should eat dinner before sweets. Mistress is not home, Kreacher has not seen her since she left two days ago. Would Master want pork roast tonight?"

But Harry had stopped listening. He drew his wand instead and stepped out of the room. He had heard a voice. He knew he had!

"Homenum Revelio!"

And yet the spell did not reveal anyone. Harry stood staring at it for a long time. He had been so sure...The voice had been slow but sill it was clearly there and real. Had someone been in his home and left? He went to the Floo. It was late but he needed to see Ginny, to be sure she was okay and had not been here.

He grabbed the little black and grey decorative pot off the fire place and dug out some of the green powder. He tossed it in and the flames roared as they turned green. Harry stepped into it and called out, "The Burrow!"

The Burrow was dark and quiet when he got there. Harry paused awkwardly as the flames died down behind him. Now that he was here, he felt silly coming so late at night to check on his wife who was scared of him. Would it not give her more reason to worry? Perhaps he could manage just to get a glimpse of her to be sure she was okay before leaving.

He was sure she would be in her old room, the Weasley's had left it as a guest room once she had moved. The Burrow was actually quite empty now that the children had all grown and moved away. It made Harry feel a bit sad and he was sure Mr. and Mrs Weasley felt the same, if not more so than he.

He tried to push the door open quietly but it creaked and immediately Ginny was up. He saw her move for her wand and he grabbed her wrist.

"Ginny! It is me, it is Harry. It is okay. I just wanted to check on you," he said in a rush. He let go over her wrist and sat on the edge of her bed as she shifted over. She was rubbing her eyes now, her red hair standing up at all angles. She yawned and blinked at him.

"What time is it? Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, everything is fine. I thought you had stopped by the house earlier…" he trailed off, not sure how to put it without sounding crazy but he must have already came off that way because she was looking at him wearily.

"Harry… What happened? Tell me the truth, you have always been a terrible liar," she said.

"I thought I heard you calling my name, Ginny."

"I have not been home since I left."  
>"I know, that is what Kreacher said as well. But I heard a voice calling me and someone had taken down the wards-"<p>

"someone?" Ginny cut him off. Her eyes were hard. "Who? Why would someone attack your wards?"

"Well that is the thing, Ginny. They were not attacked, it looks like I took them down but it happened while I was sleeping. Draco woke me up-"

"And you do not think he did it?" she demanded. "He wanted you dead, Harry."

"He never wanted me dead," he said in response and crossed his arms. "Besides, it is not like I took him for his word. I did check. There was no evidence that they had been forced down."

"So you did it in your sleep?" she asked.

"Well….I guess it is possible."

"But you do not think that is what happened?" she demanded. He shifted in his seat. She was clearly getting upset. He stood up and ran a hand through his hair.

"I wanted to be sure you were okay, I am going home now Ginny. I will talk to you tomorrow maybe."

He was out her door before she spoke again.

"I'm worried about you Harry."

He gripped the frame of her doorway hard. She really did think he was insane. He could not bring himself to reply so instead he grunted and went to the Floo. He was going to go home and sleep this off.

Harry was concerned to find Ginny and George at his house, early in the morning. Ginny was packing his clothes into bags. George was pointedly looking at anywhere besides Harry.

"what is going on?" he demanded as he watched her packing his belongings. He saw her pause before she slammed the suitcase shut and rounded on him.

"You need help, Harry! This is not normal. You are hearing voices, your magic is doing things while you are asleep, what if you hurt yourself? Or me? or our children?" She asked. She was crying and Harry reached out to her but she moved away and shook her head. "i cant I cant. You need to get help. You are sick. Let George talk you to see a Healer-"  
>"I already saw one, Ginny!" he snapped. "They could not find anything wrong."<p>

"If -if it is all-"

"If it is all in my head because Harry Potter has to be insane. Ginny, I am tired of people calling me crazy! I had to deal with that all through Hogwarts!" he was yelling now but he did not care. Enough was enough. He needed Ginny to back him up, not this, whatever this was. He could not believe his wife was essentially turning against him.

"Harry, it would not hurt to talk to them again, would it?" George asked him. Harry glared at him.

"So you think I'm nuts too?" he demanded.

"No, I think you have been through a lot of pain in your life," George said simply. He met Harry's eyes now. "Let us help you."

"No thanks," Harry said coldly. He grabbed his cloak off the hanger. "I'm leaving."

"Harry! It is your house!" Ginny cried but he ignored her and slammed the door behind him.

He was not sure where he was going to go. The Weasley's were out of the question. Malfoy might kill him for showing up but he wanted something to take his mind off of his traitorous family. So once he was clear of the wards, he Apparated to Malfoy Manor.

To say he was not nervous as he approached the gates and felt the wards burn against his skin in warning, would be an understatement. He knew Malfoy was going to be bloody livid that he showed up like this not even a day after they found out Draco was being watched. He could not help it though. He felt so alone and he needed to be around someone who believed him. Besides, Malfoy may say he thought Harry was insane but he could tell Malfoy didn't really mean it/

It took a couple minutes of Harry standing there and allowing his magic to press against the wards but eventually he felt them slide away and he was allowed entrance. He smiled and walked down the long winding path. He could see Draco standing outside now, dressed in black robes. It was not until he got closer that he could see the scowl on his face.

"Are you mad?" Draco hissed as he grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him inside. "You know I am being watched, what is wrong with you?"

"Apparently, everything. I am mad, remember?" Harry shot back and crossed his arms. He was wrong. This was not any better than being alone. He was ready to leave and just be alone when Draco offered him a drink.

"Father is not here, obviously, but it was stupid of you to come here. They are probably watching me, this gives them reason to doubt my intentions."

"Yeah, well I'm sorry. I just needed to get out of there."

He did not want to talk about it, he would not-

"Why are you here, Potter?"

"They think I'm mad!" he blurted out. He had sloshed his tea and Malfoy had jumped back, clearly startled, but he did not care. "This morning my wife and her brother are in my house, packing my bags to send me to the Janus Thickey Ward!"

Draco snorted in amusement.

"I always looked forward to the day you would be seen as the nutter I knew you were."

Harry glared at him for a moment but Draco just lifted an eyebrow and smiled. There was a long pause and Harry laughed, lifting his glass.

"Cheers, Draco."

Just as he was getting ready to drink, Draco grabbed his arm.

"Malfoy, do not start calling me Draco now. It will ruin our thing."

"We have a thing?" Harry asked with some surprise.

"Well, it is not a friendship and I am not sure what you could call this, but you will ruin it by calling me Draco."

He was dead serious, Harry thought. It really seemed to matter that he was called Malfoy and not Draco.

And the prat called him crazy!

Harry shook his head.

"Whatever you want, Malfoy."

"How long are you planning on hiding in my home?" Malfoy asked some time later. They had enjoyed a breakfast together and now were sitting in the library with the dying embers of the previous evenings fire warming the room.  
>"As long as you will allow me," Harry said immediately. "You do not understand the Weasleys, they are probably still there or have switched out with someone else or -"<p>

"Owled for reinforcements?" Draco offered. "There are many of them, they breed like Kneazles."

"Malfoy," Harry warned. There was no real bite to it though.

"If I am being watched, it is going to look very odd if we are here much longer," Malfoy pointed out. "I believe it would be beneficial if you lead me out as if you were arresting me and then using Side-Along Apparition to take us for lunch."

"Oh?" Harry said. "That is a good idea. I am not in uniform though."

Draco rolled his eyes.

"Potter, they are Death Eaters. They are not exactly known for their intelligence. The smartest they had was Severus and he was not really on their side was he?"

"What about your Aunt and Father?" Harry asked.

Draco shrugged.

"Aunt Bella was a nut and Father was…" He trailed off and did not complete his sentence. Harry was curious but did not want to push the issue. They were getting along, there was no reason to push the dragon now.

Harry took them to the Leaky Cauldron. One look at Draco revealed a rainbow of emotion.

"Here?" He asked scandalized. "Really, Potter? The Leaky Cauldron? Ugh, no, I can't-"

"They will give us a private room, Tom does not like how people swarm me when I come here but he does not want to send me away. Hey, Tom!"

Every time he came here, the memory of Tom Riddle Jr as a child would come back to him and how he did not like that this Tom had the same first name. Too common of a name for Voldemort.

He shook his head and managed a grin for the barkeeper. He was already leading them upstairs.

**********  
>"I am sure Slytherin Common Room was much better than Gryffindor's Common Room. All that gaudy red? No, thanks."<p>

"Mlafoy, have you ever been in Gryffindor?" Harry asked. He was a bit nettled. Red was a fine color, it was not gaudy.

"No," he replied and cut his biscuit. Harry never had witnessed someone cut up everything and eat their food so daintily. He was impressed.

"Well I have been in Slytherin, Gryffindor is much better, much warmer even. The winter must be harsh for you Slytherins," Harry said.

"You have not been in Slytherin House," Draco said quite forcefully.

"I have, so has Ron."

"No Weasley has ever dirtied our House, take it back or I will shove my fork up your-"

He was jabbing his fork in Harry's direction threateningly but Harry snatched it out of his grasp. Malfoy lunged across the table to get it but only managed to knock over his tea. Scowling, he sat back and tried mopping up the mess he had made.

"I hate you, Potter. I could have died happily never knowing that," he slammed his hand down. "How did you get in there anyway?"

"You let us in,the password was pureblood. Ridiculous, if you ask me." Harry replied smugly. Malfoy was turning pink from his indignation.

"I would never let you or Weasel into Slytherin. Now I know you are lying."

"Draco-"

Malfoy kicked him under the table and deepened his glare. Scowling, Harry rubbed at the spot.

"Malfoy, it is not like you knew it was us."

Draco's nostrils flared and Harry laughed. He was cute when he was upse-

He squashed that thought, feeling the heat in his face and coughed.

"We thought you were the Heir of Slytherin, but we needed proof."

This seemed to placate Draco and he settled in his chair again.

"So Hermione brewed Polyjuice Pot-"

"Potter, we were in our second year. You do not expect me to believe a 12 year old Mu-"

"Malfoy," Harry warned. Draco rolled his eyes.

"I was going to say Muggle Born. You should not assume, Potter," he said.

Harry rolled his eyes this time.

"Sure, please continue."

"Right, she was 12 years old at the time. I do not believe she could have done it successfully," Draco stated and picked up his spoon now. "So you are a liar."

"You are threatening me with a spoon now?" Harry asked, eyeing the spoon that was being jabbed in his direction.

"Do not underestimate me, Potter. I can use anything on this table to attack you."

Harry lunged forward and wrestled the spoon from him as well.

"Merlin!" Draco swore and kicked Harry under the table. "I hate you."

"Everyone knows that," Harry said. "Back on topic though, it is not like Hermione did it perfectly. She did make a mistake."

"What? What did perfect Granger mess up?" he was eager to hear more now, leaning forward without any utensils to threaten him with. Although, that could be because he was holding on to his knife for later.

"I am not telling you that, Hermione would hate me," Harry said and shifted in his seat. It was time to change the subject.

"I am not going to help you unless you tell me," Draco threatened. "We need to be able to trust each other. So trust that I will not make fun of her or bring it up to her."

"It will stay between us?" Harry asked and then shook his head. "It does not matter. Pick something else, she is my friend and I can't break her trust on that. How good would my word be then?"

Draco did not respond but instead held eye contact with him. Harry smiled nervously and then memories rushed to the front of his mind. His hands snapped up his head and he yelled, "No!"

There was a bang and he was pushed backward, falling out of his chair and sliding across the floor. He scrambled to his feet and drew his wand.

"What is wrong with you?" He yelled. Draco was on the ground rubbing his arm. From the burn on his clothes, it looked like Harry might have tried to set him on fire. "You were just talking about trust!"

"You can't trust anyone, Potter. That is your first lesson," he got to his feet and scowled. "You ruined these robes."

Harry pointed his wand at Draco's robes again.

"Incendio!"

"POTTER!" he yelped and sprayed the fire with water.

"Do not go forcing yourself into my mind, Malfoy!"

"Your mind should not be so easy to break into!" Draco snarled. He had his wand out now.

"Shut your mouth!"

"So Granger used cat hair, did she?" Draco taunted. "I bet she made a better cat than-"

Harry shot off a stinging jinx that Draco deflected. He smirked and for a moment Harry's heart skipped a beat.

"Are you going to duel me, Potter?"

"Only if you stick around. I seem to recall the first time you challenged me to a duel, you never showed."

"I was 11!" Draco yelled. "That is hardly fair to hold that against me."

"Excuses, Malfoy. You apparently have many of them."

Draco frowned at him.

"I need my utensils back in order to eat, Potter."


	5. Chapter 5

Draco went home to the mansion and straight to the library. He clicked his fingers and one of the many House Elves popped into the room. It bowed and opened it's mouth, but Draco cut across him.

"I want every book on shattered minds you can find me. If we don't have it , I want you to find it. Understood?"

"Yes, Master!" The elf squeaked and began pulling books from the shelves. Satisfied with the task he set the elf, Draco poured himself a drink. He was unnerved. Seeing what Hermione had done in their 2nd Year hadn't been the only thing Potter's mind had offered him.

There was something wrong. Connections were broken. Memories were fragmented. There was an almost overwhelming feeling of paranoia that even hours later, Draco couldn't shake from his own mind. It didn't bode well for the Gryffindor. Even if they had evidence that Potter was right about Death Eater movements, something was still very wrong with Potter's mind.

Which meant, it wasn't safe for him to continue to be involved until they sorted it out. He swirled his glass. Should he get Granger involved? No, he would just become another of many that Potter wouldn't trust and at the moment, for whatever reason, he did have Potter's trust. He couldn't afford to severe it.

The smell of ashes reached his nose and wrinkled his face in disgust. Right. He had forgotten about his ruined robes. He stood up and stripped them off tossing them into a pile before making them disappear. He looked up to ask his elf to get him a different set, but an elf was already quietly standing near him, robes folded and being held out. He smiled.

"Thank you," he said.

His elves were very efficient. As he pulled them over his head, the door to the library opened. His mother strolled in, eyes heavey and yawned.

"Darling, you are home late."

"You had an elf wake you?" He asked her. She smiled.

"Auror Potter had questions for me."

"I see. And how is he?" she asked as she settled into a chair. She frowned at the growing pile of books. "And do tell, what are you studying now?"

"Potter is fine, just paranoid and annoying."

She poked one of the books. He smiled at her.  
>"You could just pick it up."<p>

"I am trying to make conversation, Draco."

"Fair enough," he moved from the desk and sat in a chair next to him. "I entered someone's mind today, it seems to have been shattered. I want to be sure of that before I try to assist them."

"Are they aware of their state?" She asked with a frown. She grabbed a cup of tea. The elves were bringing in drinks and snacks now. He grabbed a small cake and popped it into his mouth.

"No, although, everyone in their life seems to be aware."

"How sad. He has been through so much. I suppose it's not surprising that his mind couldn't cope. Whose could?"

He narrowed his eyes at her.

"Who-"

"Darling, please. One moment you're talking about Harry Potter and the next it's simply someone? It's clearly Auror Potter you're talking about. Although, I must admit, I am impressed that you violated his mind. I assume he didn't give permission?"

He snorted.

"Of course not."

"And you didn't ask."

"I didn't want to give him a chance to protect himself, did I?" he retorted.

"Certainly not."

Draco hesitated for a moment. He wanted to ask her about Father but it could be a sensitive subject. Still, he needed to be aware. He cleared his throat and glanced at her.

"Have you heard from father recently?"

An ugly look passed over her face and she set her drink down.

"I have. He made some vague comment, hinting about an early release."

Draco's stomach dropped. So he was planning on escaping soon. He would have to inform the Order-

"I informed Azkaban, of course."

"You- you what?" Draco sputtered, cut off guard.

"Well I certainly don't want him starting another war and dragging you into it. I love your father, darling. But I love you more and I won't take that chance. I'm sure you are aware of the recent Death Eater activity. Your father would jump at the chance to take leadership and those dolts would allow it. Where would that put you? It's not a situation I want. So I won't allow it."

He swallowed the lump in his throat, stood up and closed the distance. Then he dropped to his knees and hugged her, his head in her lap.

"Thank you."

She put her hand on his head and stroked his hair.

"I love you, Draco."

"I love you too, mum."

When Harry finally made it back to his home, he found Ron sleeping on his bed. The poor guy was fully clothed and drooling on Harry's pillow. Harry felt a stab of guilt. They were probably worried about him. They were already concerned about this Voldemort stuff. He stood in his bedroom doorway watching Ron sleep for a while.

He was strongly considering leaving him sleep. They could have this talk in the morning but Ron was his best friend and with them it had always been better to face issues head on instead of waiting. Waiting caused hurt and assumptions. Harry ran a hand through his black hair and tugged on it. Hermione might be waiting up to hear news as well. There was nothing for it.

Harry walked over and sat on the edge of the bed before shaking Ron.

"Oi! Wake up, you're soaking my pillow."

Ron stirred, smacked his lips and wiped his face.

"Uergh, sorry, mate." He smiled apologetically. "I swear I was only shutting my eyes, I did not intend on this."

"Buy me a new pillow and we can call it even`

Ron grabbed the pillow as he stood up.

"Yeah, I suppose this belongs to me now?" Ron asked.

"Yeah, I do not really want to rest my head in your saliva. I love you, just not that much."

Ron's grin flickered and he sighed.

"It is time to hash this out then." Harry said with a groan. "Go a head, say it."

"Everyone was worried about you. We tried all your usual haunts and we could not find you. Ginny was sure you had got yourself into a bad position."

"I can take care of myself," Harry replied.

"We are not saying you can't mate, but what if something happened and no one knew where you were?" Ron asked. He had crossed his arms now.

"I know but I had to leave. Ron, I woke up and Ginny was packing my things for me! I can't take it. She is my wife, she is supposed to support me and all I have got from her is judgement and - and -"

"Fear?" Ron offered. "Yeah, she is scared, Harry. It is not just the two of you. It is not like how it was when we were kids. We both have kids now and if He-"

"He is!" Harry interrupted.

"Then our kids are in danger! How can you blame Ginny for being scared and not wanting to admit it was happening all over again? You know your children will be targeted! It is not a matter of if, for the Potter family, it is a matter of when."

Ron stopped. His ears were red and he was breathing heavily. It took a moment for Harry to realize he had started crying. He coughed and turned his head to swat them away.

"I know, Ron. I know but we can't just pretend it is not happening. That would not do the kids any favors. Lily is still too young for Hogwarts, but Al and James should be warned."

Ron snorted loudly.

"What would we have done if someone told us that a Dark Lord might be trying to kill us?"

Harry allowed himself to smile.

"Point taken, but I am still telling them. Teddy needs to be warned as well.," Harry said. Ron shook his head.

"Mrs Tonks is going to flip her lid if you tell her, Harry."

"Good thing Teddy is an adult and I can just talk to him one on one then."

"Who are you contacting first?" Ron asked.

"My kids, then Teddy. You are right, Al and James are at the most risk."

"You need to let Ginny know you're okay," Ron said quietly. Harry froze.

He did not want to speak with her. He was not even sure he wanted to see her. How could he after everything she had pulled on him? And yet he knew Ron was right.

"Where is she?" he asked.

"She's at the Burrow with Lily. Hermione and the kids are there too." Ron replied. Harry froze again. They were all waiting for him?

"Ron, I refuse to be ambushed. I will let them know I am okay but then I am coming straight back home. I do not want to have any sort of conversation. I got news to tell everyone but that really can wait until tomorrow. It is late." Harry pointed out.

"What kind of news?" Ron asked as they reached the fireplace.

"Proof that I am not insane."

"So, bad news."

Harry laid in bed, tossing and turning for much of the night. He did not want to have that conversation in the morning. Was it really asking too much for them to just believe him? Why must he always be met with doubt and have to prove himself? He had already proved himself. He scowled at his ceiling. Life never got any easier for him. In some senses it was better at least and Harry supposed he should be thankful for at least that.

He rolled over. He did not even want to think about Malfoy. Yesterday had been fun, too much fun. He never intended to become friends with the prat, and that had happened extremely easily now that they were no longer at school. Well, if you ignored the breach of personal space and setting the other on fire. But Mountains won't be moved in a day.

He would need to have Malfoy come to the meeting as well. With his report backing up Harry's, they should be able to convince the others of how serious the situation was. Maybe then he could even have his kids and wife back.

He sat up and tried beating his pillow into a more comfortable shape. Even transfigured, books make horrible pillows. He gave up on sleeping, rolled out of bed and made himself a cup of tea. He could send an Owl to Malfoy now. So what if it was 3am? The prat woke him up earlier than that. He scribbled out a note, asking for an early morning meeting and copied it out 3 times. One to Malfoy, one to the Burrow, and one to Ron and Hermione.

And then he waited impatiently for the responses.

Draco's response was first and rude, but he agreed to come. Slowly the other Owls trickled in and Harry called for Kreacher. He helped the old elf prepare food and drinks and when they were finished, Draco was at the Floo, demanding to be allowed in. Harry grinned and hurried into the room.

"It's about time!" Draco snarled. "I'm covered in soot!"

Harry waved his wand and some of the soot came off. Some of it just shifted. Draco groaned loudly.  
>"Don't do that again, Potter. You're making it worse."<p>

"So Apparate next time," Harry said.

"I don't want to Apparate!"

Harry groaned and stalked off to the kitchen. Draco trailed after him.

"Who is coming?" Draco demanded.

"All of the Weasleys."

"Perfect."

"Well they do make up most of the Order."

Draco narrowed his eyes. "I'm well aware of their vast numbers, Potter. It's hard to ignore an army of Ginger."


End file.
